WikiLeaks Trial of US Soldier Begins

The trial has begun for a U.S. soldier accused of leaking hundreds of thousands of classified documents to the WikiLeaks website.

More than three years after he was arrested, Army Private Bradley Manning's court-martial is underway at Fort Meade, Maryland, near Washington.

Manning already faces 20 years in prison for pleading guilty in February to 10 of the 22 charges brought against him. At this trial he could receive a life sentence if convicted on the most serious charge of aiding the enemy.

The 25-year-old Manning was arrested while serving as an intelligence analyst in Iraq. He admitted giving WikiLeaks scores of diplomatic cables and battlefield reports from the U.S.-led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, saying he wanted to spark public debate on U.S. policy.

Manning supporters say he exposed mistakes the Pentagon would never admit. But prosecutors will argue that he put the lives of U.S. soldiers in danger.